JPH11128712A - Stirring apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a stirring apparatus with a simple structure and having advantage of the cost. SOLUTION: An apparatus for stirring the insides of test tubes at the time of moving the test tubes is provided with a means 1 for moving the test tubes in a manner that tubes are freely rotated in the circumferential direction and a contact member 2 to be brought into contact with parts of the outer circumferential walls of the test tubes. A disk like member is an example of a moving means and joined to a driving apparatus 4 such as a motor. Test tubes are hung on through holes 1a of the disk-like member 1 and supported by the disk- like member 1. When the disk-like member 1 is rotated, since the outer circumferential walls of the test tubes have contacts with the contact member 2, the test tubes are also rotated due to the friction between the test tubes and the member 2 and consequently, the insides of the test tubes are stirred. In order to improve the stirring efficiency, stirring blades are preferably formed in the insides of the test tubes.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a stirring device for stirring the inside of a test tube when moving the test tube.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Measuring devices used in the field of clinical examinations and the like usually include a turntable for automatically moving a reaction cell to a reagent injection position or a measurement position in order to process a large amount of samples. ing. This turntable generally rotates a disk-shaped member with a motor or the like,
A large number of through holes for suspending and supporting the reaction cell are formed at the edge of the disc-shaped member.

In the turntable, a large number of reaction cells are moved to a specific location, and the inside of the reaction cells is agitated during the movement. For this stirring,
A method of inserting a finely vibrating stirring rod inside the reaction cell,
There are a method using a stirring nozzle, a method using a magnet stirrer, and the like. However, these agitation methods have problems such as the necessity of a special device, which increases the cost of the measuring device, and the structure of the turntable becomes complicated.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a stirring device which is simple in structure and advantageous in cost.

[0005]

In order to achieve the above object, a stirrer according to the present invention is a device for stirring the inside of a test tube when moving the test tube. A moving member; and a contact member that comes into contact with a part of the outer peripheral wall of the test tube.

That is, in the stirring apparatus of the present invention, when the test tube moves, the test tube rotates in the circumferential direction because the contact member is in contact with a part of the outer peripheral wall. The inside of the tube is agitated.

In the stirring device of the present invention, the moving means is not particularly limited, but is preferably a turntable.
In addition, means for moving the test tube linearly may be used.

[0008] In the stirring device of the present invention, when the moving means is a turntable, the contact member is annular, and further includes means for rotating the contact member in a direction opposite to a moving direction of the test tube. Is preferred. This is because, if the ring-shaped contact member rotates in the direction opposite to the moving direction of the test tube, the rotation of the test tube is further accelerated, and the stirring efficiency is improved.

In the agitator of the present invention, the contact member preferably has a large coefficient of friction so that the test tube rotates well. For example, the material of the contact member is a viscoelastic polymer, for example, Rubber and silicone are preferred.

In the stirring apparatus of the present invention, it is preferable that stirring blades are installed inside the test tube in order to improve the stirring efficiency inside the test tube. The number of the stirring blades may be one or plural, and the shape is not limited.

In the stirring apparatus according to the present invention, the test tube is preferably a reaction cell. This is because sufficient agitation is required because various reagents and specimens are charged into the reaction cell.

[0012]

Next, an example of a stirring device of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIGS. 1 and 2 show an example of a stirrer employing a turntable as a test tube moving means. In these drawings, the same parts are denoted by the same reference numerals.

First, as shown in FIG. 1, this stirring device has a disk-shaped member 1, an annular contact member 2, a connecting rod 3, and a driving device (motor or the like) 4, and the disk-shaped member 1
The connecting rod 3 is connected to the driving device 4. A plurality of through holes for suspending and supporting a test tube are formed in the edge of the disc-shaped member 1 so as to be arranged side by side in the circumferential direction. Although the number of the through holes 1a is eight in the figure, an appropriate number is preferably formed according to the scale of the apparatus, and usually 20 to 100. Further, any supporting means other than the through-hole 1a may be used as long as the test tube can be moved in a circumferentially rotatable state. The annular contact member 2 includes the connecting rod 3 in its ring.
Is disposed between the disc-shaped member 1 and the driving device 4 in a state where is located, and is supported by a support member (not shown).

Next, as shown in FIG.
The test tube 5 is inserted into the through hole 1a, and is suspended therefrom. In this case, although not shown, since the outer diameter of the mouth of the test tube 5 is larger than the inner diameter of the through hole 1a, the test tube 5 does not fall off from the disk-shaped member 1. Further, a part of the outer peripheral wall of the test tube 5 is in contact with the inner peripheral surface of the annular contact member 2.
In this state, when the disc-shaped member 1 is rotated by the driving device 4 in the direction of the arrow shown in the figure, as shown by another arrow in FIG. The member 1 rotates in a direction opposite to the rotation direction. As a result,
The inside of the test tube 5 is stirred. The contact member may be fixed and not move, but may rotate in a direction opposite to the rotation direction of the disc-shaped member 1 as described above. As the rotation means, a motor or the like can be adopted. The rotation speed is preferably higher as long as the contents in the test tube do not fly, since sufficient stirring is possible, but is usually 10 to 30 rpm.

As shown in FIG. 3, it is preferable that a stirring blade 5a is formed inside the test tube 5. The shape of the illustrated stirring blade 5a is a rectangular plate shape, but is not limited to this in the present invention, and may be appropriately determined according to the shape of the test tube and the like.

The example described above is an example in which the invention is applied to a turntable. In addition, for example, there is also a stirring device using a means for moving a test tube in a linear direction and a contact member. The means for moving in the linear direction includes, for example, a sample rack, a belt conveyor, and the like. In this case, the contact member has a rectangular plate shape.

[0018]

As described above, the stirrer according to the present invention comprises a means for moving a test tube in a rotatable state in the circumferential direction thereof, and a contact member for contacting a part of the outer peripheral wall of the test tube. When the test tube is moved, it is rotated in the circumferential direction when the test tube is moved, and the inside of the test tube is stirred. Thus, in the stirring device of the present invention, the movement of the test tube during movement is used for the rotation of the test tube. For this reason, for example, when the stirring device is applied to a turntable such as a measuring device for biochemistry or the like. This is an apparatus which can be applied simply and at low cost without complicating the structure.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the structure of one embodiment of a stirring device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating a state where the inside of a test tube is stirred in the stirring device of the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a partially cutaway perspective view showing the structure of an embodiment of a test tube in the stirring device of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Disc-shaped member 1a Through hole 2 Annular contact member 3 Connecting rod 4 Drive device 5 Test tube 5a Stirring blade

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A device for agitating the inside of a test tube when moving the test tube, means for moving the test tube so as to be rotatable in a circumferential direction thereof, and a part of an outer peripheral wall of the test tube. And a contact member that contacts the stirrer.